AWF26 Brings Global Voices to Aotearoa
Struggling to make sense of the world? AWF26 offers a series of sessions that dive into the ideas, events, and people shaping headlines today. From global politics and artificial intelligence to life under repressive regimes, the festival presents leading thinkers and writers who illuminate our complex times.
Trust in a “Post-Truth” Era with Jimmy Wales
Jimmy Wales, Wikipedia founder, has changed the way we access knowledge forever. Named one of Time’s 100 Most Influential People and recognised by the World Economic Forum as a top 250 global leader, Wales continues to shape how we understand truth in the digital age.
Today, Wikipedia is viewed 11 billion times every month in English alone. But in a world awash with disinformation, Wales argues that without trust, knowledge cannot exist, and without knowledge, we cannot respond effectively. At a special post-Festival event, he shares actionable rules for building trust in business, leadership, and life, and the warnings of what might happen if that trust falters.
Barbara Demick on Life Under Repressive Regimes
Award-winning journalist and former foreign correspondent Barbara Demick has reported from Eastern Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, earning accolades including the Samuel Johnson Prize and shortlisting for Orwell and Pulitzer prizes.
Her books—from Nothing to Envy on North Korea, to Eat the Buddha on Tibet, to Besieged on wartime Bosnia—offer rigorous, empathetic portraits of life in some of the world’s most closed societies. In her first visit to Aotearoa, Demick discusses her career and her new book, Daughters of the Bamboo Grove, with Anna Fifield.
Navigating New Zealand’s Upcoming Election
NZ’s favourite politics podcast, Gone by Lunchtime, brings a live session to AWF26. With the country just six months from a tightly contested national election, Toby Manhire (The Spinoff), Annabelle Lee-Mather (Ngāi Tahu, Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngāti Māmoe), and former press secretary Ben Thomas explore who might take the top seats, what the road to election day will look like, and how these decisions will shape the nation.
Karen Hao on the Empire of AI
Award-winning journalist Karen Hao, author of the New York Times bestseller Empire of AI, likens today’s artificial intelligence industry to colonial empires, noting its extraction of human, material, and environmental resources, often from the Global South. Hao, who first began covering OpenAI in 2019, joins Dr Kerry McInerney (Ngāti Ruanui) to explore the commercial pressures, ethical dilemmas, and global impact of AI technology today.
Writing in Today’s America with Louise Erdrich, SA Cosby, and Deborah Baker
From military invasions to political upheavals, the United States has dominated global headlines in early 2026. Major American writers Louise Erdrich, SA Cosby, and Deborah Baker discuss how they navigate the pressures of documenting a country in constant turmoil, exploring how fiction and non-fiction can help make sense of unprecedented national events.
Lyse Doucet on Geopolitical Hotspots
The BBC’s Chief International Correspondent Lyse Doucet brings stories from conflict zones to life. Using Afghanistan’s first luxury hotel, The Finest Hotel in Kabul, as a lens, she chronicles 50 years of occupation, coups, war, and Taliban rule. In her AWF debut, Doucet joins Paula Penfold to reflect on her extraordinary career and the stories that shaped her understanding of modern Afghanistan.
Global Perspectives from Maria Reva and Tareq Baconi
Writers Maria Reva and Tareq Baconi explore what it means to document a homeland at the centre of global headlines. Reva’s Booker Prize-longlisted Endling was reshaped by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, while Baconi’s memoir Fire in Every Direction traces his family’s displacement and queer awakening amidst Palestine’s history. Chaired by Julia Wheeler, their discussion considers the responsibility of writers to tell these pivotal stories while navigating life across continents.
A Shaken World Order: David Moscrop, Amitav Ghosh, and Luke Kemp
The certainties that once underpinned global politics are eroding. Democracies face strain, authoritarianism rises, and institutions struggle to maintain order amid overlapping crises. David Moscrop, Amitav Ghosh, and Luke Kemp join Susie Ferguson to examine these challenges, assess what lies ahead, and explore how we might shape a more stable future.
David Moscrop on Canada, Trump, and Political Decision-Making
Canada-based political commentator David Moscrop discusses his acclaimed works On Nationalism and Too Dumb for Democracy?, as well as his contributions to Elbows Up!, an anthology responding to President Trump’s threat to make Canada “the 51st state.” In his AWF debut, Moscrop meets Max Harris to explore political decision-making at critical moments in his country’s history.
From technology and politics to literature and international reporting, AWF26 promises conversations that challenge, enlighten, and inspire. Join us for these thought-provoking sessions and gain insight into the forces shaping our world today.